Beyond our everyday reality, two-dimensional surfaces have long been used to represent three-dimensional forms, from simple cubes to complex scenes featuring people and objects. Departing from this centuries-old technique, a German-Kosovar artist has reversed the tradition, designing a three-dimensional structure that mimics a 2D image, inspired by a ubiquitous childhood game we’ve all once played.
By: Omri Westmark
Date: 22:31 13.11.24
Last Update: 22:31 13.11.24
Born in Prishtina, Kosovo, Flaka Haliti is a contemporary artist whose experimental, thought-provoking work explores the boundary between abstraction and representation. Now based in Munich, she frequently delves into themes of identity, perception, and hybridity, merging the familiar with the surreal.
Her eccentric style also embraces innovation, often employing unconventional methods to challenge viewers’ perceptions of art. Throughout her career, Haliti has exhibited at prominent venues, including the Venice Biennale, mumok in Vienna, and Museum Ludwig in Cologne.
Among her most notable pieces, one can find I See A Face. Do You See A Face?, a towering steel sculpture that rises 15 meters into the air, nestled in the forecourt of the cultural center on Munich’s Ruppertstrasse, next to the Municipal Vocational School for Child Care.
This whimsical statue draws on the shared pastime of finding shapes in clouds – a playful exercise in imagination where we “see” forms like faces and animals in the sky. Reimagined in steel, this timeless habit is captured in the sculpture’s lines, which look as if they coalesce into a sketched face, suspended in mid-air.
A tangle of rods that twist and turn, Haliti’s work mimics a drawn line brought to life, evoking sheer curiosity among occasional onlookers. As you shift your perspective, the image transforms – what seems like a face from one angle dissolves into abstract shapes from another. Visitors are encouraged to wander around and discover fresh perspectives and hidden details with each step, as if the sculpture redefines itself anew at every turn.
In line with Haliti’s philosophy, the title of the work is itself a question: I See A Face. Do You See A Face? Therefore, this seemingly simple yet evocative structure is a monument that asks, rather than tells, reminding us to look up, look around, and let our minds roam in search of shapes and meanings that are uniquely our own.
photography by: Omri Westmark
photography by: Omri Westmark
photography by: Omri Westmark
photography by: Omri Westmark
photography by: Omri Westmark
photography by: Omri Westmark
